Sione Tau&nbspUluakiola

Full Name

Background

NZ Lawyer story 15th November 2006A man who killed his wife after she threw him out of the family home appealed his conviction and sentence for murder today. Sione Uluakiola, was convicted this year of the murder of his wife, Kalolina Uluakiola, in Otara, in February 2005, when he was aged 36. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years. Uluakiola battered his wife to death with a piece of wood, after she threw him out of the house telling him she and their children no longer needed him. Uluakiola also assaulted a second woman in the house, and was convicted of grievous bodily harm for that assault, along with threatening to kill, and assault with a weapon.

In the Court of Appeal today, defence lawyer Chris Wilkinson-Smith appealed Uluakiola's convictions for murder, threatening to kill, and the non-parole period. He told the court the trial judge had erred in ruling evidence regarding the provocation argument inadmissable. He said Uluakiola's traditional Tongan upbringing meant the act of his wife throwing him out should have been given more weight when considering provocation. Uluakiola was born and raised in a traditional Tongan village and despite living in New Zealand since 1989, he did not speak English as he had a learning disability. He mixed in a tight knit Tongan community in South Auckland.

Mr Wilkinson-Smith argued this background meant the act of telling Uluakiola he was not needed as the head of his family should have been given more gravity in considering provocation as a defence to murder. The judge had not accepted evidence from an anthropology expert that fatherhood was regarded as more important within the Tongan culture than in New Zealand. "That should have been something that the jury could have considered in determining the gravity of provocation and whether that should be something that could have added to a person losing control," he said. Under questioning from Justice Mark O'Regan he said he was not attempting to defend murder on a cultural basis, but trying to show it should be given weight when considering the seriousness of provocation.

However, the justices said the trial judge had based his decision on a 30-year-old case, which they did not have the power to overturn and suggested he would have to take that point in the Supreme Court if he wanted to pursue it. Mr Wilkinson-Smith also argued against the length of Uluakiola's non-parole period, which at 17 years was the maximum. The judge should have taken Uluakiola's depressed and suicidal state into account as mitigating factors, and the fact that as a non-English speaker, his time in prison would be more isolated and severe than for other prisoners. He could not learn the language whilst in prison due to his learning disability, Mr Wilkinson-Smith said. He suggested between 13 and 15 years would be an appropriate non-parole period. The justices reserved their decision.

Alias

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Date of Birth

Born 1969

Offences

Murdered his wife with a piece of wood in Otara, South Auckland, in February 2005 Also intentionally caused grevious bodily harm to her cousin and assaulted another cousin

Current Location

Prison

Three Strikes Status

0

Victims

**Suppressed**

Offender Affiliations

.

Gang Affiliations

none known

Parole

Sentenced to a minimum 17 years non-parole in March 2006 Earliest parole date March 2022